Elm City man charged with insurance fraud

NEW HAVEN  After an East Shore man reported his car stolen, police found it submerged in a creek in East Haven.

Published 12:00 am, Saturday, November 8, 2003

On Friday, Carlos A. Espinal, 33, of 150 Beacon Ave., turned himself in to police on insurance fraud charges.

The Connecticut Regional Auto Theft Task Force arrested Espinal on a warrant that accused him of staging the theft after he couldnt make payments on his Mitsubishi.

The investigation started in March after Espinal reported his vehicle stolen to New Haven police, said state police Detective John Albanese, of the task force.

In April, the vehicle was recovered by East Haven police, submerged in a stream, with extensive vandalism. The vehicle was declared a total loss by the insurance company, but police later determined that his claim was bogus.

In addition to insurance fraud, he faces charges of criminal attempt to commit first-degree larceny and making a false report.

He was held in lieu of $25,000 bail.

The National Insurance Crime Bureau estimates about 25 percent of all vehicles reported stolen are falsely reported.

Albanese said its not uncommon for car owners to look for an out when they suddenly cant afford payments or have a mechanical problem they cant afford to fix.

Sometimes they do that by hiring someone to "steal" their car  or do it themselves  to collect insurance.